Former employee shares horrific images from a Coles warehouse
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Content Warning: The following article contains disturbing images and descriptions of a rat infestation, which may be distressing to some readers. Discretion is advised.
We'd like to think that supermarkets store items in hygienic facilities before being sold to the public.
But there’s no way of telling for sure, is there?
Case in point: An employee at a Coles warehouse revealed horrifying images of what goes on inside the distribution centre.
A former employee of Coles discovered something unusual at the company’s Forest Lakes distribution centre in Heathwood, southwest of Brisbane: A large number of rodents had infested the facility!
While it was officially forbidden at the warehouse to use phones, the former employee still snuck his phone to take photos and videos of the rats.
The photos from the facility showed the pests running across the floor—some had even chewed packs of toilet rolls and milk and soup stocks. Some photos revealed dead baby rats on top of items after making a mess.
The ex-employee also took a video of two rats facing against each other near a pallet with boxes of goods.
The former employee, who remained anonymous, said, ‘They rip into things like long-life milk — UP&GO is one of their favourites, especially the strawberry—and Campbell's stock and Arnott's biscuits.’
‘There's 100 per cent potential for some of their excrement to have seeped into the product,’ he added.
The former employee said that damaged items from the rat infestation were thrown out, and some of them would be sent to food banks.
Rats have become a major problem in the warehouse, causing a trail of destruction after gnawing the products.
‘It's a complete infestation and the rats are defecating and pissing all over the products. There are rat faeces everywhere and the stench is terrible,’ he said.
Some products were also left partially open, and when he would collect them, the contents inside would fall out. He said that, at one point, juice sprayed all over him when he picked them up after rats gnawed the product.
The horrible situation and the poor conditions inside the warehouse led to his decision to resign after six years of working at the facility.
The staff knew about this issue but they claimed that handling this problem wasn’t their responsibility.
Coles commented on the situation, stating that it 'takes food safety seriously and we work hard to keep a clean environment and we work hard to keep a clean environment in our stores and distribution centres.’
The spokesperson also added, ‘We have an integrated pest management system, which primarily focuses on keeping pests out, and then controlling pests should they find their way in.’
Working in a warehouse can be a challenging task, and it takes a lot of sacrifice for someone to work there. In a previous article, a 37-year-old worker lost his life after being crushed by falling pallets at a warehouse in Minchinbury. Read more about the story here.
What do you think about this shocking discovery? Let us know in the comments below!
We'd like to think that supermarkets store items in hygienic facilities before being sold to the public.
But there’s no way of telling for sure, is there?
Case in point: An employee at a Coles warehouse revealed horrifying images of what goes on inside the distribution centre.
A former employee of Coles discovered something unusual at the company’s Forest Lakes distribution centre in Heathwood, southwest of Brisbane: A large number of rodents had infested the facility!
While it was officially forbidden at the warehouse to use phones, the former employee still snuck his phone to take photos and videos of the rats.
A former worker of Coles shared horrifying images of a rodent infestation in its warehouse. Credit: Unsplash
The photos from the facility showed the pests running across the floor—some had even chewed packs of toilet rolls and milk and soup stocks. Some photos revealed dead baby rats on top of items after making a mess.
The ex-employee also took a video of two rats facing against each other near a pallet with boxes of goods.
The former employee, who remained anonymous, said, ‘They rip into things like long-life milk — UP&GO is one of their favourites, especially the strawberry—and Campbell's stock and Arnott's biscuits.’
‘There's 100 per cent potential for some of their excrement to have seeped into the product,’ he added.
The former employee said that damaged items from the rat infestation were thrown out, and some of them would be sent to food banks.
Rats have become a major problem in the warehouse, causing a trail of destruction after gnawing the products.
‘It's a complete infestation and the rats are defecating and pissing all over the products. There are rat faeces everywhere and the stench is terrible,’ he said.
Some products were also left partially open, and when he would collect them, the contents inside would fall out. He said that, at one point, juice sprayed all over him when he picked them up after rats gnawed the product.
Rats were all over the Coles warehouse, creating a mess after gnawing on products. Credit: dailymail.co.uk
The horrible situation and the poor conditions inside the warehouse led to his decision to resign after six years of working at the facility.
The staff knew about this issue but they claimed that handling this problem wasn’t their responsibility.
Coles commented on the situation, stating that it 'takes food safety seriously and we work hard to keep a clean environment and we work hard to keep a clean environment in our stores and distribution centres.’
The spokesperson also added, ‘We have an integrated pest management system, which primarily focuses on keeping pests out, and then controlling pests should they find their way in.’
Working in a warehouse can be a challenging task, and it takes a lot of sacrifice for someone to work there. In a previous article, a 37-year-old worker lost his life after being crushed by falling pallets at a warehouse in Minchinbury. Read more about the story here.
What do you think about this shocking discovery? Let us know in the comments below!
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